Presidential election in Ireland, 2025 (english version)

The Irish presidential election is a major event in the country's democracy, attracting public and media attention. To understand the basics of this process, it is important to familiarise yourself with the electoral procedure and the vote counting system. The president is given a primarily representative role, but the electoral process itself is an expression of democracy in which citizens participate directly.  In this article, I will also provide a theoretical insight into how the nomination of presidential candidates is organised, voting takes place, and how votes are counted to determine the winner. 

 *** The nomination of presidential candidates in Ireland is governed by Article 12 of the Constitution and the Presidential Elections Act. To be eligible to stand as a candidate, a person must be an Irish citizen and at least 35 years of age. A candidate can be nominated in three ways: 

1. Approval by at least 20 members of the Oireachtas (MPs or Senators), 
2. With the joint support of at least four local governments (County or City Council), 
3. Or the candidate himself - if he is a former or current president who has completed only one term of office. Nomination of candidates for local governments is carried out by a decision of the council, which must give at least three days' prior written notice to all council members. Such a decision is approved by the seal of the council and submitted to the Presidential Election Commission within a certain period. Such a nomination system provides for a balance between the involvement of political institutions and the representation of public interests, but it is sometimes criticised for being excessively restrictive, as it is difficult for independent or lesser-known candidates to gain the necessary support.  ***   Voting Procedures. All Irish citizens who are 18 years of age and registered voters have the right to vote. Voting takes place on one day (usually a Friday), and the election day is announced by the government at least 30 days in advance. It is important that the voter is registered. 
4. Online at www.checktheregister.ie using your PPSN, date of birth and Eircode. If you register online, you will also need an email address. 
5. In paper form, by completing the ERF1 form and submitting it to your local council, Garda station, library or post office. The voter receives a ballot paper listing the candidates in alphabetical order. The voter numbers the candidates in order of preference - the first choice is marked with a "1", the second with a "2" and so on. If there is only one candidate in the election, no vote takes place and that candidate automatically becomes the President-elect. *** Vote counting system. The vote counting takes place in several stages. First, the first-choice votes are counted, and the number of quotas is determined - half the number of valid ballots plus one. For example, if there are 1,000,000 valid votes, the quota is 500,001. If a candidate exceeds this quota, he is immediately declared the winner. If no candidate reaches it, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated, and his votes are transferred to the voter's next choice. This process is repeated until a candidate receives enough votes to reach the quota. This system of voting and counting ensures that the president is elected with majority support, while giving voters the opportunity to express a wider choice without wasting their votes on less popular candidates.

*** Candidates for the 2025 Presidential election.

1. Catherine Connolly (Independent, left-leaning) Age: 68 Profession: Former lawyer and clinical psychologist, Dáil (Parliament) Member of Parliament for Galway since 2016 Supporters: left-wing coalition (Sinn Féin, Green Party, Social Democrats) Program emphases: moral leadership, social justice, addressing the housing crisis, promoting the Irish language, maintaining Irish neutrality, and strong support for human rights (especially on the Palestinian issue) Results: Won the election by a large margin, becoming the tenth President of Ireland and the third woman to hold the office.

2. Heather Humphreys (Fine Gael, centrist) Age : 64 Profession : Heather Humphreys has served as a member of the Irish Cabinet, specifically as Minister for Social Protection and Minister for Rural and Community Development since 2020, until the 2025 presidential election. Supporters : center-right party Fine Gael Program highlights: emphasis on unity, entrepreneurship, pro-European values, traditional image of the president, experience in government Results: Winning about a quarter of the vote, she publicly congratulated Connolly on his victory.

3. Jim Gavin (Fianna Fáil, candidate) Profession: Sports manager, briefly nominated by Fianna Fáil Status: Officially withdrew before the election due to a private disagreement, but his name remained on the ballot and the votes he received were counted as the third candidate Results: received a small number of votes, with two female candidates in the lead.

This election campaign marked a shift in leadership positions to left-leaning independent candidates, while traditional parties faced public criticism of the results.

As in every election, shortly before the finale, unpleasant facts often "surface" that could influence voters' opinions about a candidate and change the election result. In these elections, each candidate faced unpleasant facts or controversies that came to the attention of the public and the media:

1. Catherine Connolly (Independent, left-leaning): Her victory was overshadowed by an exceptionally low voter turnout (around 46%) and a record number of spoiled ballots, seen as a protest against candidate selection and party politics. C. Connolly has made several public statements harshly about the EU, the US and NATO, particularly in relation to issues of war and defence funding, which has raised concerns about possible diplomatic and domestic political frictions during her presidency. Her outspoken criticism of immigration policy, as well as calls from several right-wing party supporters to spoil ballots due to the lack of another candidate, created a sense of division among voters and strong protest from the conservative electorate.
2. Heather Humphreys (Fine Gael): Humphreys was sued for defamation by left-wing politician Paul Murphy over comments he made on a television debate about a recent protest demonstration and trial, causing a stir during the election campaign. Her team had to clarify a long-standing animal welfare case (in which she was only indirectly involved), but media and comments from some officials raised concerns about the potential impact on the investigation. There was also public discussion about her previously planned but later withdrawn reform for people with disabilities, with criticism that this decision was politically motivated.
3. Jim Gavin (Fianna Fail): He unexpectedly withdrew from the election amid a public 16-year dispute with a former tenant over unpaid rent of more than €3,000. Gavin admitted to “a mistake that is out of character” and returned the money only after public scrutiny. In addition, he faced an aggressive online disinformation campaign that he called "malicious and unfounded" and registered complaints about the spread of rumours on social media. His withdrawal a few weeks before the election shocked the public – it was a rare precedent in the history of presidential elections. These nuances highlighted voter dissatisfaction, as well as public caution regarding candidates' reputations and governance transparency.

*** Catherine Connolly's victory in the Irish presidential election can be explained by a combination of several factors that directly resonated with the current public mood: Social background and personal story: She comes from a large family, emphasising the experience of an ordinary Irish family, which builds trust and creates sympathy among a wider circle of voters. This background contributed to the image of her as one of the "people".

Irish language proficiency and cultural identity: Connolly is fluent in Irish and has consistently supported the preservation of the language, which is particularly important to some voters who want to strengthen their national identity and traditions. Her presence in both languages ​​made voters feel heard.

Concreteness, clear messaging, and poise: Throughout her campaign, she delivered precise, concrete messages on social justice, housing, climate change, and peaceful neutrality that resonated with the priorities of many voters. Connolly's voice is calm and confident, creating a sense of trust and stability that is especially important in times of social and political challenge.

Transparency, anti-corruption and independence: C. Connolly is not affiliated with the major parties and positioned himself as a “people’s candidate” outside the traditional elite. Voters are tired of party infighting and corruption scandals, so they preferred an independent voice.

Ability to unite different groups in society: C. Connolly's experience in psychology and social work allowed her to speak empathetically about the interests of minorities, seniors, and the marginalised, which increased electoral diversity.

In summary: The keys to Ms Connolly's victory are empathy, concreteness, speaking in Irish, reflecting the values ​​of a simple family, independence and the ability to speak convincingly on socially important issues. It is these qualities that made voters identify with her, trust her and prefer the alternative she offered on election day.

Finally, I will mention one more important aspect of the Irish electoral system for Irish citizens living abroad. According to the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, citizenship can be obtained by:     

☝ Automatically if the person was born in Ireland or if one of the parents was an Irish citizen at the time of birth.     

☝ With Foreign Births Registration, if the person was born outside Ireland, but one of the grandparents had Irish citizenship or was born in Ireland. Under this law, citizens living abroad with an Irish passport would automatically have the opportunity to participate in both the Irish presidential and parliamentary elections, which is currently not possible.

***Theoretical note 📌 

In this context of the image of the election winner, it is necessary to turn to Gustave Le Bon's theory of crowd psychology, so that we can evaluate whether the theory works or not in reality. Gustave Le Bon (1841–1931) was a French sociologist, physician, philosopher, and traveler, widely known as the creator of the theory of crowd psychology. He is considered one of the pioneers of social and collective psychology, whose ideas have influenced both later sociologists and political leaders. Le Bon's main work is "La psychologie des foules" (1895), or "Psychology of Crowds". In it, he explained that the personality of the individual in a crowd merges into a common "collective consciousness", where emotions dominate over rational thinking, and people become easily influenced. Le Bon believed that a new psychological entity arises in a crowd - the "collective mind", which determines people's actions. Le Bon defined a leader as a personality who possesses: strong will and belief in one's ideals - the leader must believe in what he preaches, because this belief infects the crowd with enthusiasm; Charisma and authority — a leader's words must embody a convincing emotional force that can influence those around them; a simple and symbolic form of expression — the crowd does not understand complex ideas, so the leader must create images and models that appeal emotionally; The ability to use suggestion and repetition - by repeating the same message, the leader strengthens belief and unites the masses in a common emotion. Connolly's victory in a Lebanese perspective: She embodies the “collective ideal”—a man of the people from a large family, with a concern for the problems of ordinary people that echoes Le Bon’s description of the “dream of the crowd.” Her clear, emotionally powerful messages (social justice, housing, language, independence) replace complex political debates with easily understandable slogans—which, according to Le Bon, are the basis of crowd thinking. Her poised, calm, and concrete communication builds trust and reduces tension, which in Le Bon's theory is crucial for a "leader" who embodies the collective will. The emphasis on identity and culture (Irish language, ordinary family) allows voters to identify with the candidate on an emotional level, not just rationally. In summary: Connolly was able to manage collective hopes, grievances, and identity issues with an emotionally compelling and simple message. This is largely consistent with Le Bon's insights into the crucial role of leadership, emotional influence, and symbolic speech in mass choices. Her victory shows how powerful the psychological factor still is, even in rationally conditioned elections.

Despite the fact that the new Irish president does not quite match Le Bon's theoretical prototype of a winning leader, Catherine Connolly won the vote of 63.36% of voters precisely with her "non-standard" image of a leader - to be the third woman - President of the Republic of Ireland after  Mary Robinson (1990–1997) Mary McAleese (1997–2011)

Although social differentiation is observed in modern societies, growing nationalism, which tends to adopt the characteristics characteristic of the pre-World War II era - namely, a pronounced "us versus them" mindset, an emphasis on ethnic identities, collective solidarity based on tradition, language and symbols, which can lead to societal polarisation, exclusion and sometimes even political radicalisation, is actually a societal reaction to rapid social change processes, which often create insecurity about the future, a sense of threat to local culture and a desire to protect their traditional values. This reaction often manifests itself in resistance to external influences - government reforms, the interests of multinational corporations, migration flows and economic decisions that are perceived as threats to collective identity and social stability. The election of Catherine Connolly as the new President of Ireland symbolises the public's desire for authenticity, empathy and unity, giving hope for a more inclusive, fair and socially responsible future for the country.